The Doberman Pinscher is a dog breed that is described as vicious, unwanted and dangerous, after all these animals were bred for protection. Different breeds of dogs such as the Terrier, and the German Shepard shaped the Doberman we know today, now people continue to combine these dogs searching for the perfect build of the Doberman. Each exhibition in this website is an important one, some including advocacy and others representing how mistreated the breed is.
The history of the Doberman Pinscher is how the representation of the breed came to be. A man created the breed to have a strong, dangerous dog walking next to him as he walked alone with money through different parts of town. Although muscular, these dogs have a thin build, with a long head and a long muzzle. Humans then began to shape all Dobermans to what they wanted, such as cropped ears and docked tails. These dogs are born with long floppy ears and long thin tails, but to deliver the idea of intimidation and danger, we cut them. When we dock the tails and crop the ears of these dogs, we cut the circulation off and then cut it, usually not using anesthetics. The dogs are put through this pain, with their ears and tails wrapped in white cloth, just for the satisfaction of humans. Even the American Kennel Club has a requirement that these dogs must have their ears and tails clipped, to create the perfect dog. Doing this to the dogs is abusive mentally and physically, as they do feel each cut that’s being administered to them. Some people do not think these animals have the capacity to suffer and that they do not feel these cuts, but they do. It relates to Jeremy Bentham’s quote “the question is not, can they reason?, nor can they talk?, but, can they suffer?” Dobermans, along with other dogs, can have emotion, and they can suffer. Dobermans are not just a type of dog that only thinks about killing and protection, these animals long for the feeling of love and caring. Sadly, many experience loneliness since they are stuck in rescues hoping for homes. They suffer through depression of being alone in rescues, they suffer when we dock their tails and crop their ears as well. Some of the rescues also put in religious quotes on their websites in hopes to sympathize with the visitors of the page, showing these dogs have emotion and can suffer as Jeremy Bentham claims.
Humans also tend to combine this whole breed as one. Dobermans are not represented as a safe breed. It is true that some Dobermans could have a vicious side to them, as could all animals, but there are some Dobermans who have a big heart, they are very sweet and would do anything for their owner. Instead, people combine the whole breed, saying every Doberman is vicious, ruthless and ready to kill, this is the massification of animals. Carol Adams explains massification as combining the whole breed or species into one, instead of understanding the individuality of each animal. Dobermans face this every day due to their representation. Dobermans are described as vicious animals and compared to politicians by a news reporter who was called out on his unfathomable remark. Others combine the whole breed by representing them in movies, in the movie “They Only Kill Their Masters”, a Doberman is seen as dangerous for possibly killing his owner. Thankfully, there are people who don’t adhere to the massification of these animals and adopt them from Doberman shelters because they believe in them. A story that goes against massification is when a rescued Doberman saved a little girl from being bitten by a venomous snake. This shows that not all Dobermans are dangerous, each dog has his or her own personality and to combine them all as one is unseemly. Combining all dogs even though each has his or her own personality and background would be like combining all humans as one, saying all humans are murders just because one was put in prison for murder.
Doberman Pinschers are a gorgeous breed of dog, we as human should not alter their ears or tails for our personal needs. Each Doberman also has his or her own individual brain, emotion, and ability to suffer. When humans combine the breed in the form of massification it brings on a bad reputation for the animal. These Dobermans are stuck in specialized rescues because most people are scared to adopt them, and give them a home even though some of these dogs have the biggest heart and would love to watch over and join the family they are introduced in.
Doberman Pinscher 